Fried pasta snack food

ABSTRACT

A healthful snack food of durum semolina wheat flour made by frying a readily hydrated pasta product such as from an extrusion process using low shear cooking conditions and moisture venting before extrusion.

FIELD OF THE INVENTION

The invention relates to a fried pasta snack food product that is easyto consume, crunchy, and exhibits a pleasant tast. The invention alsoinvolves the method of manufacturing such a snack food.

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION

The market offers a number of snack foods with varying degrees ofnutritional value. Fried pasta snack foods are desireable over othertypes of snack foods because pasta is based on wheat. Wheat, of course,is a complex carbohydrate that satisfies hunger without providing highlevels of sugar and fats.

The problem with conventional fried pasta snack foods is one of textureand crunch. Conventional pasta extrusion processes produce a dense,coherent flour and water product that, when fried, either overexpands toform an airy product lacking a satisfying substantiality. Overly lightproducts do not provide a sufficient bulk to satisfy the hunger causingsnacking. On the other hand, an underexpanded fried pasta forms a heavymass with a hard, unpleasant crunch which deters casual consumption byall but the most determined. Either an unsatisfying bulk or unpleasantcrunch force will cause consumers to turn away from relatively healthypasta to more easily consumed, but less healthy, snack foods.

It would be desireable to have a manufacturing process for making anfried, extruded pasta product that would expand and form a moderatelylight, easily chewed product with a satisfying bulk.

SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION

It is an object of the invention to provide a process and food productmade therefrom that is a moderately light, easily chewed, fried pastafood product.

The process of the invention comprises:

passing a pasta flour and water mixture through a preconditioner attemperatures in the range of about 150° F. to about 210° F. for 20-180seconds to partially pre-cook the mixture;

introducing the partially pre-cooked mixture into an extruder forpassage through a cooking zone to produce a cooked mixture;

passing the cooked mixture through a venting zone under subatmosphericpressure to reduce the moisture content and temperature of said cookedmixture;

passing the mixture from the venting step to a forming zone and throughan extrusion die to yield an extruded pasta product;

frying the extruded pasta product in oil at about 275°-400° F. withagitation for about 20-90 seconds; and

recovering the fried pasta.

The pasta product resulting from the process of the invention is lightand crunchy with a bulk sufficient to satisfy snacking hunger.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

FIG. 1 is a block diagram of the processing sequence according to theinvention.

DETAILED DESCRIPTION

The snack food according to the invention is based on a mixture of 87-92wt % durum semolina wheat flour and about 8 to about 14, preferablyabout 11 to about 13 wt % water. Durum semolina wheat flour ischaracterized as having 12-14% protein, less than 3 g. fat, and 12-14 wt% moisture based on the flour. One or more extrusion agents such asmonostearate surfactants can be used provided they are in minorquantities, e.g. less than about 1.5 wt %, and do not materially affectthe nutritional value of the final food product.

The pasta that is fried in accordance with the invention is preferablymade in accordance with U.S. Pat. No. 4,763,569 which is hereinincorporated by reference. The apparatus is described in additionaldetail in U.S. Pat. No. 4,875,847 which is also incorporated herein byreference.

The apparatus and extrusion process described in those patents isconveniently explained with reference to the figures.

In accordance with the extrusion step of the present invention, durumwheat semolina flour and water are treated in a preconditioning stage,cooked, dehydrated, formed, dried, and fried. In preconditioner 1, theflour is mixed with water and heated to a temperature of about 160° F.to about 210° F. to partially pre-cook the flour and water mixture.Desirably, about 50 to 85% by weight of durum wheat semolina flour(preferably 70-85%) is mixed with about 15 to 50% by weight of water(preferably 15-30%). Preferably, the mixture in the preconditionercomprises from about 70 to 65% by weight of semolina flour and fromabout 30 to 35% by weight of water. The residence time in preconditioner15 is about 20-180 seconds with a residence time of 1 minute to 2minutes being preferred. Steam is preferably injected intopreconditioner 1 as needed to adjust the temperature.

Once the durum wheat semolina flour and water have been partiallypre-cooked and preconditioned, the mixture is introduced into anextruder and advanced along its length by axial rotation of one or moreextruder screws. The extruder is preferably surrounded withheating/cooling means such as a jacket in which cooling or heating wateror oil can circulate for subjecting the flour and water mixture toindirect thermal interchange during advancement along the length of thebarrel. Other expedients such as electrical resistance, inductionheating, or direct introduction of heated water or steam could also beemployed. Preferably, the mixture during travel through the entirelength of the extruder has a temperature in the range from approximately130° F. to approximately 210° F. subject, of course, to the maximumtemperatures in the cooking zone as set forth hereinabove. Optionally,the temperature of the mixture in the forming zone is less than thetemperature of the same in the cooking zone.

The flour and water mixture is heated during advancement through cookingzone 2 to a maximum temperature of no more than about 215° F., althoughthe preferred maximum temperature is about 205° F. The residence time ofmaterials within the cooking zone is within the range of about 10seconds to about 25 seconds and preferably about 15 seconds.

The cooked flour and water mixture is then passed to a venting zone 3that operates under subatmospheric pressures. In venting zone 3, thecooked flour and water mixture is dehydrated to a relatively lowermoisture content than that present through the cooking zone. The escapeof moisture from the flour and water mixture also cools the mixturewhich facilitates handling and extrusion through the die. The pressurein venting zone 3 is preferably about 2-10 psia, most preferably about6-9 psia.

Preferably, venting zone 3 includes means to prevent the cooked flourand water mixture from escaping the relatively higher pressure chambersof the extruder. A suitable restriction means is described in U.S. Pat.No. 4,763,569 which is a vertically oriented screw 4 that rotates so thethreads advance toward the axis of the extruder. Any cooked flour andwater mixture that would tend to move toward the vacuum source is urgeddownwardly by the movement of the threads.

Significant amounts of moisture are removed from the flour and watermixture during passage of the mixture through venting zone 3. Therefore,relatively large water can be used in the cooking zone to reduce theshear forces otherwise imposed upon the flour and water during theirpassage through cooking zone 2. Reducing the shear in cooking zone 2increases product integrity after rehydration. Moreover, reducing theshear avoids a slimy texture of the product and decreases overall energyconsumption of the extruder.

A vacuum greater than about 2.5 psia in venting zone 3 is described asuseful in U.S. Pat. No. 4,763,569 for reducing the required productrehydration time and avoiding the formation of air bubbled in theproduct. Such rehydration times may be useful when the pasta product isheated in hot water, however, the pasta characteristics caused by theextrusion process make the product particularly useful for a fried snackfood. The oil uptake and expansion characteristics produce a snack foodhaving a pleasing texture and a medium level of bulk to produce a snackfood with a satisfying density.

From venting zone 3, the flour and water mixture is passed to formingzone 5. In forming zone 5, the flour and water is subjected to highpressures and forced through at least one opening in at least one dieplate. The residence time of the mixture in the forming zone is fromabout 20-60 seconds and preferably is approximately 45 seconds at apressure within the forming zone of from about 200 to about 1200 psig,preferably about 500 psig to about 600 psig. The extruded pasta productpreferably has a density of about 385-480 g/l.

As the mixture is passed through the die to yield an extruded product, aknife held under compression against the outside face of the die or diescuts the extruded product to the desired length. The cut pasta productswill have about 26-30 wt % water. The cut pasta products are advanced todrying station 6 to render the cut product suitable for frying.

The extruded products are preferably subjected to a temperature of fromabout 75°-180° F. in drying stage 6 for a period of about 20-60 minutes.Preferably, the extruded products are dried at a temperature of about120° F. to about 140° F. for a period ranging from about 20 minutes to30 minutes.

Drying is continued until the extruded pasta has about 8-14 wt % water.Preferably, the pasta is dried to about 11-13 wt % water. As a generalrule, higher water contents result in a pasta product having a moreopen, airy texture. The highest levels of water present a practicalproblem with handling because the flour stream starts to resemble aslurry which does not extrude into fixed shapes.

The dried pasta is then passed to frier 7 containing hot oil at atemperature of about 275°-400° F. for 20-90 seconds with agitation. Theoil is preferably a food grade vegetable oil. The fried product isdrained, coated with any desired flavoring agents, and packaged.Preferred flavoring agents include garlic, cheese, hot spice, hotpepper-based, and pizza.

The following example illustrates the lightly crunchy nature of friedpasta products according to the invention.

EXAMPLE 1

A comparison was performed between an extruded pasta product thought tobe extruded with conventional extrusion methods and a fried pastaproduct according to the invention (11% water). Conventional extrusionprocesses involve forcing a flour paste of less than 11% water through adie, cutting the extruded product to length, and frying the cut productin hot oil. Flavoring spices can be added either before or after theextrusion process depending on the stability of the agent through thefrying process. The flavoring agents were added after the frying stepfor the example representative of the invention.

The conventional extrusion product is commercially available as amixture of tube, clam shell, and spiral shapes. Where relevant, themeasurements taken reflect which shape or form was tested. Fried pastain the shape of a log having a cross section of a four-pointed star("star" pasta) were also included in the test for further comparison.The product of the invention was extruded in the form of a spiral ofabout 1.5 inches in length and about 0.5 inches in diameter.

Each product was tasted and subjectively noted for texture and the easewith which the product was chewed. The subjective observations of thetaste test are listed below in Table 1.

TABLE 1

conventional extrusion process: The mixed shape product looks light andairy but actually has a hard crunch. The product breaks down in themouth with some continued chewing.

star pasta: The star-shaped logs are very hard, dry, and crunchy. Theytaste like "broken glass" and do not rehydrate in the mouth. The logsare dense.

embodiment of the invention: The product of the invention appears to belight and airy which is the texture actually encountered in the mouth.The crunch is light. The inventive product seems to rehydrate in themouth easily which makes the chewing enjoyable.

To place a relate relationship among these labels, the quality of eachproduct was rated by number from 1 to 10. The number 10 denotes thehighest magnitude.

                  TABLE 3                                                         ______________________________________                                                  Conventionally                                                                Extruded Pasta                                                                           Pasta Star                                                                              Invention                                      ______________________________________                                        Hardness of Texture                                                                       9            8         5                                          Density     5            10        7                                          Pleasing feel in the                                                                      3            1         8                                          mouth                                                                         Ease of rehydration                                                                       7            3         9                                          ______________________________________                                    

EXAMPLE 2

The light crunch and airy texture experienced from the taste test wasfurther investigated to determine whether such sensations correspondedto quantifiable physical measurements such as found in a test measuringthe crush strength of the products. The test devised involved threerepetitions of each sample except for the conventional fried pastasample which is commercially available in three geometric shapes. Forthis sample, only one test per sample was performed.

The crush test involved the placing of three product samples in atriangle about 1 inch apart between two wooden planks that were about 2ft×2 ft. in size and sufficiently thick to avoid substantial bendingunder the test weights. Weights in either 24 or 25 oz. increments wereloaded onto the planks to minimize tilting of the planks. Accordingly,weights were loaded by starting in the center of the sample trianglewith the 2nd and 3rd increments added simultaneously to sides of thecenter. Subsequent loads were stacked on top of the first loads untilthe product samples crushed.

Because the crushing occurred dramatically, the endpoint and crushstrength were clear although it can only be said that the crush pointwas somewhere within the 24-25 ounce range where the break occurred. Thecrushing test results are in Table 3.

                  TABLE 3                                                         ______________________________________                                                       Crush Point                                                                            Average                                               ______________________________________                                        Conventional fried pasta                                                      (shell)          275 oz.    199 oz.                                           (tube)           177 oz.                                                      (spiral)         146 oz.                                                      Pasta star       148 oz.    132 oz.                                                            100 oz.                                                                       149 oz.                                                      Invention         69 oz.    132 oz.                                                             68 oz.                                                                        69 oz.                                                      ______________________________________                                    

As the crushing test establishes, the fried pasta product of theinvention has a lower crush strength which translates into a snack foodthat is easier and more pleasant to eat than fried, conventionallyextruded pasta.

We claim:
 1. A fried pasta snack food consisting essentially of wheatand water, said snack food having been made by a processcomprising:passing a pasta mixture consisting essentially of wheat flourand water through a preconditioner at temperatures in the range of about150° F. to about 210° F. for 20-180 seconds to partially pre-cook themixture; introducing the partially pre-cooked mixture into an extruderfor passage through a cooking zone to produce a cooked mixture; passingthe cooked mixture through a venting zone under subatmospheric pressureto reduce the moisture content to within the range from about 8 to about14 wt % water and also to reduce the temperature of said cooked mixture;passing the mixture from the venting step to a forming zone and throughan extrusion die to yield an extruded pasta product; cutting theextruded product to the length of a snack food; drying the cut pasta toa moisture level within the range from about 8-14% water; frying thedried pasta product in oil at about 275°-400° F. with agitation forabout 20-90 seconds; and recovering the fried pasta as a snack foodexhibiting a light and airy texture in the mouth with a light crunch. 2.A snack food according to claim 1 wherein said mixture consists of wheatflour and water.
 3. A snack food according to claim 1 wherein said wheatflour consists essentially of durum semolina wheat flour.
 4. A snackfood according to claim 1 further comprising at least one flavoringagent.
 5. A snack food according to claim 4 wherein said at least oneflavoring agent which comprises garlic, cheese, hot spice, hotpepper-based, or pizza.
 6. A snack food according to claim 5 whereinsaid at least one flavoring agent is coated on the fried pasta.
 7. Asnack food according to claim 1 wherein the cut pasta is dried to about11-13% water before the frying step.
 8. A snack food according to claim1 wherein the cut pasta is dried to about 11% water before the fryingstep.
 9. A process for making a fried pasta snack food, said processcomprising:passing a pasta mixture consisting essentially of wheat flourand water through a preconditioner at temperatures in the range of about150° F. to about 210° F. for 20-180 seconds to partially pre-cook themixture; introducing the partially pre-cooked mixture into an extruderfor passage through a cooking zone to produce a cooked mixture; passingthe cooked mixture through a venting zone under subatmospheric pressureto reduce the moisture content and also to reduce the temperature ofsaid cooked mixture; passing the mixture from the venting step to aforming zone and through an extrusion die to yield an extruded pastaproduct; cutting the extruded product to the length of a snack food;drying the cut pasta to a moisture level within the range from about8-14% water; frying the dried pasta product in oil at about 275°-400° F.with agitation for about 20-90 seconds; and recovering the fried pastaas a snack food exhibiting a light and airy texture in the mouth with alight crunch.
 10. A process according to claim 9 wherein the passingstep comprises:passing a pasta mixture consisting of wheat flour andwater through a preconditioner at temperatures in the range of about150° F. to about 210° F. for 20-180 seconds to partially pre-cook themixture.
 11. A process according to claim 9 wherein the passing stepcomprises:passing a pasta mixture consisting of water and a wheat flourconsisting essentially of durum semolina wheat flour through apreconditioner at temperatures in the range of about 150° F. to about210° F. for 20-180 seconds to partially pre-cook the mixture.
 12. Aprocess according to claim 9 wherein the drying step comprises:dryingthe cut pasta to a moisture level within the range from about 11-13%water.
 13. A process according to claim 9 further comprising:coating thefried pasta with at least one flavoring agent.
 14. A process accordingto claim 13 wherein the coating step comprises:coating the fried pastawith at least one flavoring agent which comprises garlic, cheese, hotspice, hot pepper-based, or pizza.